AmourShipping

This article is about shipping. As hints and evidence for ships are mostly speculation, this page may contain personal points of view.

AmourShipping (Japanese: サトセレ SatoSere) is the belief that Serena and Ash belong in a romantic relationship. The name is derived from the French word "amour", meaning "love". It was chosen as the name because the Kalos region is inspired by France (known for its romantic atmosphere) and Serena has a canonical crush on Ash.

This ship is one of the most popular in the anime, much like other ships involving Ash and one of his female friends, such as Template:S, Template:S, and Template:S. However, AmourShipping is unique compared to these and most other shippings because of the confirmation of Serena's crush on Ash, rather than fans presuming based on hints and inconclusive evidence. Its popularity began before the premiere of the XY series due to the revelation that Serena knew Ash in their childhood. Thus far, it has been a central detail in the beginning stages of Serena's character arc.

Anime evidence

Serena's hints

• Lumiose City Pursuit

• When Serena sees a live news report of Ash trying to calm a rampaging Garchomp on Prism Tower, she silently looks on, seemingly in awe at Ash's bravery. When Ash jumps off the tower to rescue Pikachu, she gasps in fear for his safety. However, this may have been merely general concern, since the news camera never showed Ash's face in full until he was safely on the ground.
• Upon seeing Ash's face on TV, she ponders whether she recognizes him, having a flashback scene of a younger Ash at the end of the episode.

• A Battle of Aerial Mobility!

• Serena decides to begin her journey after seeing Ash on TV. Upon arriving at Professor Sycamore's laboratory, and before choosing her starter Pokémon, Serena tells the professor that she is looking for the boy who was on the news. Her eyes seem to light up considerably when Sycamore identifies him as Ash.

• A Blustery Santalune Gym Battle!

• When Serena is walking down the steps in Santalune City, she thinks about how she cannot wait to see the look on Ash's face when he sees her. Then, she has a flashback of a young Ash extending his arm, as if he was offering her his hand. When the flashback ends, she is seen blushing slightly.
• When she sees Ash battling Viola, she is so overcome with excitement that she runs toward the battlefield, seemingly planning on going directly on there to greet Ash without noticing that the battle is still in progress.
• Later, when Ash loses the battle, Serena is obviously remorseful and attempts to speak to him, but is further saddened when he runs past her without noticing her, since he is concentrating on his injured Pokemon.
• When Serena returns Ash's backpack to him (which Ash had left behind at the Gym), she starts to ask Ash something while blushing a little, only to be interrupted by the Pokémon Center bell.
• When Ash is on the ground from the intense training, dirty after falling to the ground while catching Pikachu and Fletchling, Serena walks up to him and hands him a handkerchief to clean himself up with, showing her thoughtfulness towards him.
• Serena looks evidently nervous before she asks him if he remembers her. It is interesting to note that when she is seen interacting with her mother, Serena has a sassy and rebellious attitude towards her, but whenever she is around Ash, she seems to be extremely hesitant and nervous, contradicting the personality that viewers have seen from her in prior episodes.

• Battling on Thin Ice!

• After she asks Ash if he remembers her, Serena mentions that they met in Professor Oak's Pokémon Summer Camp in Pallet Town. When Ash remembers attending the camp, she is overjoyed and tells him that she went there as well. However, when he says that he does not remember her specifically, she is visibly disappointed, but instantly cheers up, obviously not wanting to be upset or angry with him.
• When the group is having dinner after the training session, Serena glances at Ash and smiles at him while he is eating. Since this is directly after him saying that he is sure to win the rematch, this strongly implies that she is admiring his determination and is impressed by it.
• Throughout the entire Gym battle, her cheering for Ash seems to be in a more enthusiastic way than Clemont and Bonnie. She also keeps reassuring Clemont, Bonnie, and Alexa that everything is going to be okay and that Ash would win, showing that she strongly believes in him. Later, when Ash becomes overwhelmed by Viola's new battling strategies, Serena cries out to Ash that he should not give up (echoing a motto Ash had told her in their childhood). In that scene, the emotions are seemingly emphasized. Her encouragement snaps him out of his panic and helps him win the battle.

• Giving Chase at the Rhyhorn Race!

• After Ash asks Serena to join them in their travels, she puts a hand over her heart and smiles before winking at him and accepting the invitation.
• When Clemont asks Serena why she started her journey, she pulls out the same handkerchief Ash used to bandage her, and shows it to Ash in a second attempt to get him to remember their past. This shows that Serena has kept the same handkerchief Ash used to tie up her knee with after all these years.
• In a flashback of when Ash and Serena first met as children, Ash bandages Serena's knee and then pulls her up from the ground. She ends up falling into his arms in some sort of hug, and the camera zooms on her surprised face. Then, she quickly pulls away and looks at him, a surprised expression on her face. When Ash is showing her the way out of the forest, she is wide-eyed and blushing. This flashback indicates that Serena developed feelings for Ash after that incident.
• When Ash identifies Serena as the same girl he helped when he was younger, she blushes.
• Ash asks Serena why she went through all the trouble of returning the handkerchief to him and she replies with "I felt nostalgic and wanted to see you". Serena then pouts with blush marks on her face when she says that Ash didn't remember her. This shows that she was slightly hurt that Ash did not remember her upon first glance like she did to him.
• Serena puts on a pink outfit for Rhyhorn racing and then asks Ash what he thinks of it with a blush on her face.
• When Serena is on top of the Rhyhorn and demonstrating for Ash how to ride one, she is blushing.
• When it is nighttime and everyone is sleeping, there is a view of the whole room with Serena's bed shown to be empty. It is then revealed that Serena is in the kitchen baking. At the end of the episode, she hands to Ash a pouch filled with cookies. She blushes and tells him that it is because she is thankful towards him. Then, she has a flashback of her and Ash when they were younger holding hands. After the flashback ends, she winks at him.

• Kindergarten Chaos!

• When a teacher named Penelope challenges Ash to a battle and states that if she wins, he would have to come with her, while she also called him "sweetie". Serena freaks out and begins to blush. Later on, when Penelope takes the group to the kindergarten she works at and Serena realizes she misunderstood her, she puts a hand over her heart in relief.
• When Ash is pushed out of the truck by Team Rocket, Serena quickly runs towards him while shouting his name.

• Breaking Titles at the Chateau!

• Serena and Bonnie are both excited to introduce the idea of the Battle Chateau to Ash. While Bonnie blushes over the possibility of cake, Serena is blushing because she is sure that he would like it. After they arrive there, Serena asks if this is something Ash's interested in, which he answers in the affirmative.

• A PokéVision of Things to Come!

• Serena is visibly worried when Ash mentions that the video of Aria looks cute before he clarifies that he's talking about Aria's Fennekin. Once the clarification is made, Serena's expression softens.
• When Serena asks Ash for help with her video and he declines, she is upset. Note that she asks Ash before everyone else.
• At the end of the episode, Serena specifically asks Ash what he thought of her video with a blush on her face.

• Climbing the Walls!

• When Ash is rock climbing in Cyllage Gym, the camera closes up on a worried Serena.
• Even before the battle between Ash and Grant starts, Serena is very worried. She clasps her hands together which catches the notice of Bonnie and Clemont. She then begins to blush and, at one point, tears up when thinking about how hard Ash has trained.

• A Battle by Any Other Name!

• Miette asks Ash teasingly if he has a future bride in mind (in reference to Bonnie asking women to have her brother Clemont) to see how Serena would react. Serena is shown to be paying close attention from the corner of her eye with a frown, and then looks away and pretends indifference.
• When Ash is holding on the tube to stop the air flow from reaching the mecha so it could run, the camera goes to a worried Serena who yells out his name in concern.
• At the end of the episode after Ash calls Serena's name, Miette teases Serena about him and says that if Serena doesn't tell Ash how she feels about him, then she will. Serena blushes bright red, but walks away smiling. It is interesting to note that Serena is the only girl to not deny her feelings for Ash when teased about it.

• The Bonds of Evolution!

• When Ash bangs his head against the tree after catching Pikachu, the camera focuses on Serena who shouts his name in concern while clasping her hands together.

• Heroes - Friends and Faux Alike!

• When Ash tries to go down the transporter after Pikachu, Serena grabs and stops him. It is interesting to note that only Serena makes an effort to stop Ash.

• Mega Revelations!

• When Ash is battling Korrina, only Serena is cheering him on, while Clemont and Bonnie are complimenting how strong Lucario is.

• The Cave of Trials!

• While everyone's picture is being taken, Serena slides closer to Ash leaving an obvious gap separating them from the others and unlike everybody else, Serena isn't looking into the camera but is looking at Ash when the picture is being taken.
• After the group photo, Serena stands there admiring her picture with Ash until he calls her to hurry and she turns around with a blush. Viewers who listen closely will hear Serena sighing happily before Ash calls her.
• When the group is entering the cave, Serena grabs on to Ash, showing that she is scared and uses Ash for comfort.

• XY037

• Throughout the episode, Serena is immensely worried about Ash, more so than Clemont and Bonnie. When they are in front of the mirror that Ash went through, Serena clasps her hands together and wishes for Ash to return.
• When the mirrors drift apart, Ash is carried to the other side away from the group. Mirror Serena yells at Serena that if she wants to travel with Ash, her will for him has to be strong. Serena's eyes widen and then she nods her head in determination realizing that if she wants Ash back, she has to try her hardest.
• Serena saves Ash by grabbing his hand and helping him make it back to their dimension. Even with both Clemont and Bonnie were also reaching for Ash, it is Serena who tries extra hard to grab him.
• After Ash is safely back in their dimension, Mirror Serena tells Serena to take good care of Ash; Serena smiles and nods her head in understanding.
• At the end of the episode, Serena asks Ash if their group of four will be together forever, to which a smiling Ash replies with that she shouldn't even have asked such an obvious question.

Ash's hints

• Giving Chase at the Rhyhorn Race!

• In the beginning of the episode after Serena says she doesn't know what she is going to do, Ash asks her to travel with them, saying that it was because of her that he won the Bug Badge and that it would be nice if she stayed with them. This is the first time that Ash has asked a female companion to travel with him. It can also be noted that when Ash asked Serena to travel with him, he appears to be nervous which is shown in his voice and when he scratches his cheek; cheek scratching is a classic anime symbolism for nervousness.
• In a flashback of when Ash and Serena first met as children, Serena hurts her knee. Ash arrives, takes out a handkerchief upon seeing her injury, and bandages it up for her. Then, he holds out his hand and when she hesitates to take it, he grabs her hand and pulls her up, quickly taking her by surprise and making her fall into his arms in a hug. It is noted that during the hug, it is Serena who pulls away and not him. Afterwards, he holds her hand and helps her find her way back to the camp.

• Mega-Mega Meowth Madness!

• It can be noted that Ash checked on Serena first and asked if she was okay instead of checking on Bonnie or Professor Sycamore.

• A PokéVision of Things to Come!

• When Serena is in her Fennekin outfit, Ash is seen to be blankly staring at her, possibly out of attraction. His is the only face out of everyone present (an audience including Bonnie, Clemont, Dedenne, Froakie, Fletchling and Pikachu) that has a different expression than the others. It is worth noting that the camera focuses on just Ash's face at first, showing everyone else a few seconds later.

• XY037

• When the Mirror Dimension is splitting apart, Ash makes a great leap across the chasm and grabs on to Serena's hand, instead of calling upon one of his Pokémon or Clemont's robotic arm. This is an example of Ash trusting Serena which strengthens the bond between them.

• XY040

• When Serena begins to fall down the cliff, Ash grabs Serena's hand to stop her from falling, but gets pulled down to.

Other hints

The Valentine's Day poster with Ash and Serena.

• On the second promotional poster for the series, Serena is depicted blushing while looking at Ash.
• Battling on Thin Ice!

• After Serena asks Ash if he remembers her, Ash's Pikachu and Fletchling run to Clemont and Bonnie in response, implying that the two Pokémon sensed that this was a sensitive moment between Ash and Serena and that they should be left alone.
• As Serena and Ash talk, Alexa is seen smiling at the two of them, suggesting that she enjoys seeing the two of them together and even senses a spark between them. However, she could have also smiled as a response to Serena restoring Ash's motivation to train, by quoting a sentence he once said in his childhood, about "never giving up".
• Before the start of the rematch between Ash and Viola, Alexa tells Serena when she heard Ash and her talking, he needed some inspiration, but she didn't think it'd be from her. This sentence implies that Ash wouldn't have been as inspired and determined to win the battle if Serena hadn't appeared.

• On the first official character connection table, an arrow is shown from Serena to Ash with the phrase "I love ...?".
  • In the March 2014 issue of Onnanoko to Tame no Kuchikomi & Tōkō Magazine, there is a summary of Serena where among her character description it says that she has special feelings towards Ash. There is also another character connection table with an arrow from Serena to Ash that says "very interested in".
    • The aforementioned magazine also includes a poster with Ash and Serena (Clemont and Bonnie are clearly missing) surrounded by Pokémon and hearts. Serena is holding a heart while looking up at Ash.
• There is another official poster from Animedia Magazine of only Serena and Ash sitting next to each other and holding drinks.
• On the official Pokémon movie website (Japan), there is a quiz where one question is asking what the dialogue from Serena was at the end of XY039 and one of the options is Serena saying, "My dream is, to become Satoshi’s bride… AH! I am embarrassed!"

This article is part of Project Shipping, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on each couple in Pokémon.